


Love & Shore Leave

by bikuai



Series: Cod(IW)tober [2]
Category: Call of Duty (Video Games), Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare - Fandom
Genre: Gen, another trash piece for this self imposed challenge of mine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 15:41:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21018209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bikuai/pseuds/bikuai
Summary: Cod(IW)tober Day Seven/Eight: Love/Shore leave





	Love & Shore Leave

**Author's Note:**

> Another drabble. I actually kinda hate this one, but I gotta post something y'know.
> 
> Also, even more proof that I can only write trash reader fics

The Martian sky shimmered faintly, remnants of the past storm season lingering in the air. It wasn’t often that you were in a position to see the above-ground in its full glory, but when you did, you were always amazed by the expanse of pale gray-blue above you.

From the base of the space elevator, you had an almost unobstructed view of the surrounding region. The clusters of above-ground complexes were densely situated here for ease of access to the orbital shipyard. The horizon, however, remained unblemished by human structures. From all the time spent underground, you often forgot the emptiness that rested above you. Your whole life had been based in the tunnels and caverns that composed much of the civilian population on Mars. In fact, it wasn't until the day of your marriage that you had your first encounter with the brilliance of the surface of Mars.

You were torn from your mesmerization by the sound of your name from one of the naval officers.

Within the loading dock, there were several SDF soldiers as well as quite a few Intracore agents. Their presence unsettled you quite a bit with their statue-esque posture and hard gaze, but that was likely due to your unfamiliarity with military protocol. Caleb Thies, the highest ranking of the naval personnel stationed, arrived at your place by the window and greeted you.

"This excursion is off to a great start; the storms have well subsided, and we should be on our way up soon," he commented, hands folded behind his back.

Caleb led you to the entrance to the elevator. He was polite but reserved, and was one of the few officers you knew before today. Despite the animosity you knew existed between him and your husband, Caleb had attended your wedding and offered his sincere congratulations to you.

After completion of several preliminary system checks, the ascension procedure was started, and the elevator began to rise.

The acceleration was gradual but apparent in the way you felt compressed into your seat. However, you paid little mind to the heavy sensation, instead focusing on the scene beyond the glass. Your field of view grew further and further, exposing a wide expanse of red soil. Seeing your home this way, from the outside, sent a wave of warmth through you. This is what your husband got to see every time he departed or arrived through the Martian atmosphere. To know that he saw this beautiful mix of red, white, and orange and thought of you drove your heart into lilting somersaults.

As the atmosphere disappeared below you, the windows of the shaft came to an abrupt end, turning the room into a dimly lit metal box.

"Don't worry; we are almost to the shipyard," Caleb declared, sensing your displeasure at the loss of your beautiful view.

His remark reminded you of your purpose here and your heart recommenced in its rapid beat. You were to welcome your husband home from a short excursion commanding the Olympus Mons. He had departed the day after your wedding, and this would be your first time together since then. Initially, you had been angry with him for scheduling a mission at such an inconvenient time, but now, after a month without him, you were more than ready to have him home.

In a letter he sent you some days ago, he had promised that the shore-leave scheduled for after his current mission would be of substantial length. Enough time, hopefully, to indulge you with the comforts of married life. All the shared meals, casual outings, late-night talks, and lazy mornings you could want...what he’d described sounded like heaven.

Getting married was such a relief to you both, no longer needing to hide the extramarital affections you shared on his past shore leaves. Having such affairs with the admiral of the SDF's largest orbital fleet would be reason enough for you to be prosecuted for obstruction or some other fuzzily defined offense. Lucky for you, your lover wished no such harm to fall upon you, and he was more than happy to put a ring on your finger.

Now, at the Tharsis Orbital Shipyard, you eagerly awaited the arrival of your husband. Within the high tech corridors that comprised the central ring of the structure, there were just enough viewports to allow you to observe the docked Olympus Mons as well as the small drop ships carrying supplies to and fro. You tried to ignore the critical gazes of the soldiers who seemed irked at being assigned such a trivial mission as escorting you, some botanist who happened to catch feelings for the admiral. Even in your honorary High Command uniform, you knew you were out of place in the military setting. It was only the accompaniment of Caleb Thies that provided you with some comfort and familiarity. He stood off to the side, watching you watch the ships in respectful silence.

You knew the moment Salen Kotch came aboard the shipyard. The soldiers snapped into their positions on either wall of the corridor. Standing at attention, they more resembled C6 sentries than humans. Even Caleb positioned himself formally at the head of the two rows. You stood beside him, unsure whether the formalities of this procedure applied to you. With everyone in anticipation of the admiral’s presence, the room had gotten deathly silent. Only the persistent humming of machinery could be heard over the staccato beat of your heart.

All uncertainty disappeared from your mind when the airlock was unlatched and the love of your life stepped through the threshold.

“Permission to come aboard?” He asked, maintaining his professional composure while flicking you a quick but unapologetically loving look.

“Permission granted,” Caleb answered, in the friendliest tone you’d ever known him to use with his arch-rival.

Salen seemed unfazed at the gesture and responded with a curt nod. You were curious about his reaction, but there wasn't time to ponder it as he finally turned to face you.

“My love, you are well, I hope?” He asked, taking your hand and brushing his lips against your knuckles in a chaste kiss. You held his gaze all the while, heart flipping in your chest.

“Yes, of course. Everything's just wonderful,” you gush, feeling his love seep into your bones. He offered you a small smile before leading you by the hand down the aisle of attentive soldiers.

You didn’t make it much past them before a dull siren went off, accompanied by flashing red lights. There were several protocol codes read off by the announcement system, but you had no idea what they referred to. You turned to Salen in fear, but he seemed unconcerned, even a little annoyed with the alert.

“What’s going on? Are we in danger?” You sent furtive glances over your surroundings, looking for potential sources of harm. It suddenly occurred to you that there wasn't much in between you and the dark vacuum of space outside.

Salen let go of your hand and wrapped his arm around your waist, holding you to him. “We’re not in any danger," he reassured. "Artificial gravity has been shut off for maintenance. It seems I didn’t plan my return as well as I had thought.”

There was humor behind his words, as well as guilt. You knew he wanted to make this special, and things just didn't want to happen as they should. Giving him a smile, you tried (and failed) to maneuver your body into a less awkward position.

"No, it's perfect. All this," you gestured to the machinery and interfaces displaying data you couldn't hope to understand, "is fascinating to see. I'm finally getting a taste of what you're up to when I'm not around. Besides, I've dragged you to too many of my botanical gardens to know so little about what  _ you _ do."

At that, he laughed and pulled you closer. "I don't expect you to love naval strategy as much as you do plants, but seeing you in this uniform…" He gave you a sultry look. "It's as if you were made for the bridge,  _ my _ bridge."

You raise a brow at his words but choose to indulge him. "Oh really, me, with no command experience, on the bridge of the Olympus Mons?"

"If you want," he replied without a trace of jest. "Your presence would boost morale and—"

Before he could elaborate on that thought (which you were very interested in hearing), Caleb approached as formally as he could manage in low gravity. He sent an apologetic look your way for interrupting but stated his announcement nonetheless.

"The elevator is ready for the return trip to the surface. I should hope that you've had enough time to reconcile your affairs?" The question was directed toward Salen, and he brightened at the mention of what was being referred to.

You, on the other hand, felt left out due to your lack of knowledge on the subject of their conversation. Turning your attention away from them, you spied the sharp edges of a Skelter being towed just beyond the nearest window.

This new relationship between your husband and his rival confounded you. You'd never seen them in a room together without quarreling, but now it seemed as if they were the perfect image of camaraderie. Thinking about it, you noted that, since your wedding, neither Salen nor Caleb had made any harsh remarks about the other. Maybe they had finally got over themselves, or—much more likely—they realized that they had something in common. You guessed being in love would do that to a person, especially with the unconditional adoration Salen held for you, and Caleb held for his own partner.

You were pulled back to attention by a squeeze on your hip, Salen tugging you toward the return elevator.

"Sorry about that," he murmured. "There's a section of the Olympus cargo hold I'd devoted to imported gifts for you, and we were just ensuring they would make a timely arrival to our home in Cydonia." His hand rose and brushed a thumb over your cheek. "I can't wait till you see all the wonderful things I've brought; I even managed to acquire several of those Earthen plants you've been studying."

A gasp left you at his statement. "Oh, Salen, you  _ shouldn't _ have! There's no need to go through so much trouble for me," you laughed, reaching over to place a kiss on his cheek. You knew the hassle involved in transporting Earthen goods—customs could be a real pain sometimes—but he seemed unfazed by the mountain of paperwork likely waiting for him at home.

"Anything for the love of my life," he said, returning your kiss.

As you descended in the elevator, anticipation threatened to overcome you. Little did Salen know, he wasn't the only one with a surprise. Waiting at your home was all the roses you had managed to grow within the last month or so. Which, with the use of cultivation techniques you had developed, totaled in the several hundred. That, along with the wonderful evening you had planned, would act as a wonderful beginning to Salen's shore leave.


End file.
